From Sun writer Joe Burris:

A week after the Discovery Channel show Mythbusters featured the story of a steam gun made popular during the Baltimore Riot of 1861, stories about the gun are still emerging.

One of them has come from former Baltimore Country resident Joe Clark of Fort Pierce, Fla., 80, who said he was one of the men who built a replica of the steam gun for centennial celebration of the Civil War more than three decades ago.

That replica currently sits behind the Elk Ridge Landing sign in Elkridge.

"Somewhere in 1961 or '62, Mark Handwerk and I built the mock up that was used in the parade and displayed at that time," wrote Clark. "The work was done at Glenelg Dehydrators, a farming operation located in the rear property of what is now Glenelg Country School."

Clark said he and Handwerk built the replica from sheet metal on a wooden frame and a collection of junk parts they found on the farm.

"After the Civil War Centennial was over … the steam gun wound up in Elkridge."

Speaking on the telepone from his grandchild's home in Ellicott City, Clark said he enjoyed the Mythbusters show, where a protype model of the gun was made and fired.

"I thought it was interesting that they made it work at all.," Clark said. "The device we made was just out of sheet metal. It was just like it was out of a movie set."

Read Joe's story previewing the steam gun episode of Mythbusters here.